Safety device for elevator cars



July 31, 1923.

H. S. SNEAD SAFETY DEVICE FOR ELEVATOR CARS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 12, 1922 uoemtoz WJM v 1 am o/1, M W

July 31, 1923.

H. S. SNEAD SAFETY DEVICE FQR ELEVATOR CARS,

2 Sheets-Sheet 2' Filed Jan.

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Patented July 31 1923.

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HERBERT S. SNEAD, QF MONTCLAIR, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOB T O- OTIS ELEVATOR I 1,463,297 ne ori ice COMPANY, OF JERSEY. CITY, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION JERSEY.

1 SAFETY DEVICE non ELEVATOR cans.

Application filed January 12, 1922., Serial No. 528,590.

To all w 720m 2'25 may concern:

Be it known that I, HERBERT S'. drilled), a citizen of the United States, residing at Montclair, in. the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Safety Devices for -Elevator Cars, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements 1n safety devices for elevators, more particular ly' to safety devices for that class of elevators which is provided with door-actuated control. mechanism, which involves a switch in the control or operating circuit to the hoist ing motor controlled by the position of the car gate or door. An object of my invention. is to provide appliances or means on both the hatchway door and the elevator car gate which will interfere with each other in the closing of the car gate, and obstruct or prevent the closing of the elevator car gate and the switch unless the hatchway door is closed in advance of the closing of the elevator car gate.

I obtain another object by the appliances or means on the elevator car gate, the said appliances or meansbeing a part of my present invention, and comprises a member flexible in one direction only, called later on the elevator car or its gate nearer to the hatchway openings or floor landings than is normal, the said flexible member of the appliances or means of my invention on the elevator car gate will'strike the sills of the floor landings or other projections that are in its path of travel throughout the elevator hatchway in the up-and-down travel of the elevator car when thesaid displacement occurs, which indicates that the elevator car or its gate is out of true withthe hatchway in which it travels, sincethe said member of the appliances on. the elevator car gate is flexible in a direction to. adapt. it to. give way when it strikes a floor landing sill, or other projections that are, in. its path of travel, the elevator car gate will not be torn adapted tobe torn off the elevator car g te, but, only when the, displacement or the elevator car guide shoes or' guide, rails, or for any other reason, resulting in a displace ment of the elevator car, so. to speak, has reached great proportions.

I attain the above objects, by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying d-raw.- ings.

invention attached thereto, together. with a fragmentary part of a hatchway floor landing door with the-other part, of my invention attached thereto.

Figure 3 is a vertical view ofFigure 2.;

Figure 4 is a vertical viewi-n section on the line 44, Figure 2. I

Figure 5 is a plan view ofFigureQ.

- Similar numerals refer to. similar: parts throughout the several; views.

Referring now to Figure 1,; an elevator car, C, is suspended by hoisting cables, 1., which run over a driving sheave, 2. secured to a shaft, 3, of a motor, The usual counterweight, cwt., is secured to the. ends of the cables opposite to thecar.

Electromagnetically operated reversing switches to control the motor." M, are ClQSlQZ-t Other objects of the invention. will appear nated, R and R g the: switch R controls of a copper segment D, is insulated from, but mounted on the elevator car gate I, and another electrical contact, is mounted on-the. side oi, the elevator car These contacts are brought together in contact, with each other when the car gate 1 is; closed. The contacts are, in an electrical control or operating. circuit to the hoisting motor M. Whenthe contacts are closed against each other-the control circuit, for the hoisting motor; M. can be closed by operatin the operating means in dirsct c i e ther to the lett or t depending upon which direction of car travel is wanted. When the contacts are separated from each other, the control circuit for the hoisting motor cannot be closed, and, consequently, the elevator car 0 cannot be started away from a landing. I have shown the contacts mounted on the elevator car gate I and another part of the elevator car C, but it is to be understood that they can be mounted on any other part of the elevator car 0 or parts affixed to the car, provided that they function to close or open the control or opera-ting circuit to the hoisting motor M, as the case may be when the elevator car gate I is closed or opened respectively.

In the Figure 1 a control circuit for op erating the hoisting motor M, is from main a, through the left hand blade of the main line switch A, by wire 4, contact 5 of the reversing switch R, by wire 6, through winding 7 of the reversing switch R, assuming that an up direction of travel of the elevator oar C is wanted, by wire 8, contact 9, and lever 10 of the car switch D, assuming the contact and lever to be contacting each other, by wire 11, contact E on the elevator car, contact D on the elevator car gate, back to contact E, assuming that the contacts are closed against each other, by wire 12, through the middle blade of the main line switch A, to the main 6; The reversing switch It will close its contacts as a result of the circuit through its winding 7, just traced, and through its now tlosed contacts, circuits are established for operating the hoisting motor M, which will rotate in a di rection to cause the elevator car C to travel in an ascending direction. For a descending direction of elevator car C travel, the reversing switch B would be caused to be operated. The parts mentioned and their arrangement as shown are old, and need not therefore be further described.

In my invention I have used a cam F, which I will describe fully hereinafter, which may be afiixed to the elevator car gate, I, in any manner that may be deemed desirable, and is carried on the gate guide rail 19, and moved. in the operation of opening and closing the elevator car gate. In combination with the cam F, I have employed another cam G, which is fastened to an angle, H, and it in turn fastened to the body of the hatchway door J, or inserted therein as may be deemed desirable, and so mounted that it will engage or contact with the cam, F, on the elevator car gate rail 19 when the two cams F and G are brought together in the operation of closing the ele vator car gate. The two cams F and G in contact with each other, constitute an obstruction to the closing of the car gate, I, until after the hatchway door J is firs; closed. In Figure 1 the, position of the cam G differs somewhat from its position in the other figures that it appears in, for the reason to make it stand out more clearly in the figure, than it would if shown as in the other figures that it appears in; 110V.- ever, either position of the cam G may be found to be correct for actual use.

Referring to Figures 2 to 5 inclusive, the part of my invention carried on the elevator car gate rail 19 comprises a carrying member 13, secured within a pipe or tube 14, by screws 15. The pipe or tube 14 is slotted throughout a short part of its length and is riveted, or as I have shown for convenience, fastened to the folding or collapsible elevator car gate, I, by strips 16, fastened to the gate and pipe. The carrying member 13, solid at its top center part only, and slotted through its remaining part, extends outwardly in opposite directions, narrowing down to the point where it enters the pipe 14. Within the slot formed in the carrying member 13 are rollers 17, held by pins 18, in the member 13 which together with the slot in the pipe 14; encompasses the car gate guide rail 19, upon the top side of which the top rollers 17 travel, and on the bottom or under side of the rail the bottom roller 17 travels. A three point suspension is obtained by the present arrangement of rollers 17, which adds materially to the strength and stability of the elevator car gate, and is a means of support for the cam F; also, the present arrangement of rollers 17 is entirely independent of the con-- struction of the elevator car gate andof whatever means of fastening to the car gate that may be employed. The construction is such that the cam F will resist a torsional displacement in a plane parallel with the car gate track 19, regardless of the lack of rigidity of the car gate, 1. Upon the front side of the carrying member 13 are formed hinges 20, which hold the cam F by means of a pin 21. Also upon the front side of the member 13, are formed projections 22 be tween which the cam F hangs, their object being to steady the cam F, and to guard against any side play that the cam may develop and transmit any torsional strains through the carrying member 13, and the rollers17, to the elevator car gate track 19. The cam F of the part of my invention carried on the elevator car gate track 19 is adapted to be moved in a plane, perpendieular to the car gate track, against the action of a spring, 23, which tends to hold the cam F, in its out position, so to speak, a finger 24: formed at the top of the cam F, limits the action of the spring 23 and fixes the out position of the cam F. A cup or recess 25 is formed in both the cam F and the member 13, for the ends ofthe spring. 23 to lie in. In an up direction of travel of the elevator car C, should the cam F strike a floor landing sill, or any other projection in the hatchway that is in the path of the cam F, the cam will cam off the sill or other projection by its surface 26, and in: a'downward direction of travel of the elevator car, the'carn F will cam off by its surface 27. Hereinbefore I said that'the cam]? would be brokenofi' should thegdisplacement of the elevator car reach greatproportions. This would occur in a down direction of-travel of the elevator car C, whereas when the cam F struck the floor landing sill or other projection at its end 28, the cam F-ini-ght be caused to be moved straight up and not cam in" toward the gate track 19, as it would ordinar'ly do, butiin the event of the cam F striking as just told, the

7 pin 21 will be broken off, asit is small and fragile enough to take care of the above emergency.-. The elevator ca'r G traveling in an up direction of car travel when the elevator car is in an extreme displaced position,

so to speak, thecam F, in: striking a fioor land-ing sill at this time after camming off the floor landing sillby its surface 26, will push the car gate further into the elevator can v In Figure 2, a will be seen that the. am

F on the elevator car gate I, has other camming sur'faces29 and 30, they being adapted in the up or down travel of the elevator car C, when the cam F is in line with the cam G on a floor landing door J ,due to the door being partly opened, to strike? the curved ends 31 or 32 respectively of the cam The surface '29'or 'of'the cam Fon. the elevator car gate will cam the cam G on the floor landing door J, to one side inthe above instance, the camming action being in thedirection that the door J is moved to be closed, so that when the above camming takes place the door will be caused to be moved to beclosed,. but if the elevator car gate I is inclined to be moved easier than the floor landing door J when the cams F and G contact with each other, the car gate will be opened, breaking the engagement of the contact D with the contact E, which will cause the elevator car to be stopped in its travel. It will be understood that my invention of a'safetydevice for elevators is adapted to be used with automatic door closers of either hand or power type and shown hereinbeforje. In thisjway, I virtuallyassurethat. the door J at a floorlland that when the floor landing door has'been closed it is normally locked against being opened until the elevator car has again arrived at the landing at which the door is at,

but it may be the case that the door did not lock itself and that, while the elevator car. was at some other point in its travel, the door may have been opened to a degree that the cam G on the door has been'brought in line with the cam F on the elevator car gate, told above, and that in the travel of the elevator car it passes the floor landing at which the opened door is, at whichtime the cam F on the elevator car gate will strike the cam G on; the floor landing door by its sur ing opened, and it being desired to start the car away fromthe'xlanding, the floor landing. door will have to be closed. first,! be-.

cause the control circuit to the hoisting m'otor M wlll have to be closed by thecontact D and E, before the elevator, car can be i started, and'therefore, .until they are first brought into: contact with each other, the control circuit' will notbe established. They cannot be brought into contact with each otherwitho-ut closing the elevator car gate I, andcthe latter cannot be closed without first closing the floor landing'door J, and thereby move the cam G, afiixed to it, out of the path of thecam F in'the closing movement of. the elevator car gate F. Thus it will be seen that the floor landing door J willshave to be closedfirst,-before the contacts D and 'E can be closed together by the closing of the elevator cargate I. 'The arrangement of the: cams F and G is such .that they are in a path with each other in the closing movement of closing the elevator] car gate I despite the compression or, in the absence of the spring 23,."further, the means of :support',fand attachment of the cam F on the car gate and its carrying member.1.3, and'of the'cain'G, and its fastening H-on the floor landing door are sufiiciently rigid so that the cam F cannot becforced past the cam G, in the closing movement ofclo'sing the fioorlanding door.; /Thegfioor land ing doorJ being closed,yand the elevator c'ar gate I now. being closed, and the contacts D and E now beingtogether, the control cir cuit for operatingthe hoisting motor M'to operatethe elevator car:C, c'an'now be closed by operatingthe operating means B, as

ing will be closed,-and not left open, upon the car moving away from the landing. I wish it to be understood that my invention is not limited to thedetails or conat its top, aslotted member carried astride combination of the of, and adaptedto travel on the said rail, and a slotted pipe to which the said member is secured. and aflixedto the car gate, the said rail being within the slot in the pipe also, the-whole to resista torsional displacement'of the car gate in a plane parallel with the guide rail for the car gate.

2. In an elevator the combination of the elevator car, a cam thereon, acar gate, the cam being afiixed to the car gate, a guide rail, the gate and cam being carried on the rail, a shaft door and a cam thereon, the latter serving to act as an obstruction to the cam on the car to prevent the closing of the car gate without first closing the shaft door.

3. In an elevator the combination of the elevator car, a cam thereon, a guide rail for the same, the cam being carried on the guide rail by a three point suspension member, a shaft door and a cam thereon, the latter serving to act as an obstruction to the cam on the car to assure the closing of the shaft door.

4-. In an elevator the combination of the elevator car, a cam thereon, a car gate, the cam being aflixed to the car g ate a guide rail for the cam, which is carried on the rail by a three point suspension member, comprising three rollers and their holding members, a shaft door and a cam thereon, the latter serving to act as an obstruction to the cam on the car to prevent the closing of the car gate Without first closing the shaft door.

5. In an elevator the combination of an elevator car, a cam having two camming surfaces and flexible in one direction and rigid in the other direction, and adapted in the travel of the elevator car, when the gate happens to be displaced, to strike the sills of the floor landings or other parts projecting out-in its path by either of its camming surfaces and cam the gate into its normal placement, and a guide rail adapted to carry the cam.

6. In an elevator the combination of an elevator car, a ear'gate, a cam on the car and affixed to the car gate, the cam having two camming surfaces and flexible in one direction and rigid in its other direction, and adapted in the travel of the elevator car, when the gate happens to be displaced, to strike the sills of the floor landings or other parts projecting out in its path by either of its camming surfaces and cam the gate into its normal placement, and a guide rail adapted to carry the cam.

7. In an elevator the combination of the elevator car, a cam on the car having two camming surfaces, a shaft door and a cam thereon, the cam on the car adapted to strike by either of its camming surfaces, in the travel of the car, the cam on the shaft door and cam the door closed.

8. In an elevator the combination of the elevator car, a car gate, a cam on the car afiixed to the car gate and having two camming surfaces, a shaft door and a cam thereon, the cam on the car adapted to strike by either of its camming surfaces, in the travel of the car, the cam on the shaft door and cam the door closed.

9. In an elevator the combination of the elevator car, an electric hoisting motor, a car gate, a cam on the car affixed to the car gate and having two camming surfaces, a shaft door and a cam thereon, an electrical switch mounted on the car and in the controlling circuit of the motor, adapted to be closed by the car gate when closed, the cam on the car adapted to strike by either of its cam- .ming surfaces, in the travel of the car, the

cam on the shaft door and result in. camming the car gate open and the opening of the switch on the car to stop the car.

10. In an elevator the combination of an elevator car, and a car gate, a safety device, comprising a carrying member and a cam aiiixed thereto, being uspended by a pin between hinges formed on the carrying memher, and held out, from the face of the carrying member by a spring held in pockets formed in the cam and carrying member.

11. In an elevator the combination of an elevator car and a car gate, a safety device, comprising a carrying member and a cam affixed thereto, being suspended by a pin between hinges formed on the face of the carrying member, a spring held between the cam and carrying member to give the cam flexibility in one direction and stops or projections formed on the face of the carrying member to hold the cam rigid in its other direction.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification.

HERBERT S. SNEAD. 

